Use This Exercise to Reduce Knee Injuries

By Sean Holmes

-February 11th, 2016-

In the latest episode of the lacrosse training tips with the Toronto Rock we cover a simple exercise we can do to reduce the likelihood of a knee injury.

It is a simple, but not easy drill.

Single Leg Hops teach the athlete strength, balance, and stability in each leg as well as proper landing mechanics.

The focus is on landing on the ball of the foot initially, then immediately getting your heel down and bending your knee absorbing the force through the posterior chain (hamstring and glutes).

By absorbing the force through your posterior chain you will take a lot of the pressure of your knee (we do not want to land with a stiff leg!)

Lastly, you want to prevent your knee from caving in towards the mid-line (valgus). Almost all knee injuries occur from your knee caving in to the middle (think MCL and ACL). By training your body to prevent that motion you are teaching it to resist those forces and be a much more stable joint.

Females especially need to train their body to absorb force in this manner as they are at a much higher risk for knee injuries due to the fact they tend to have a higher Q angle (this is due to females generally having wider hips than males).

Again this is a simple drill and can be done anywhere. We used the ladder as a guide, but you can also use your lacrosse stick, tape on the floor, or just your imagination.

Check out the full video below and this at the end of your dynamic warm up to reduce your risk of injury!

Tags: ACL, balance, change of direction, injury prevention, injury reduction, knee injury, stability, strength